School catering procurement: how STEP Academy Trust boosted efficiency and savings
At a glance
• Client: STEP Academy Trust
• Sector: Education
• Challenge: Managing consistent, healthy in-house catering, recipes, allergen data and supplier invoicing across 20 academies created a significant administrative burden for a lean facilities and catering team.
• Solution: A long-standing partnership with Avendra International, built around the Pi eProcurement system for order management, recipe and menu costing, automatic allergen data, and consolidated invoicing, later extended to premises, cleaning and commercial equipment procurement.
• Results: Invoicing consolidated into a single monthly payment, automatic allergen updates saving staff time, consolidated cleaning suppliers with free dispenser installation, reduced delivery frequency, a 9.4% tendered saving, and a five-year contract extension.
About STEP Academy Trust
Established in 2011, STEP Academy Trust is dedicated to improving the life chances of all children across its 20 academies in East Sussex and South London.
Suzanne Martin, Head of Facilities, explains how a strategic procurement partnership has streamlined the Trust’s catering management and procurement processes, significantly increasing savings and efficiencies.
Why STEP Academy Trust manages school catering in-house
I’ve been the Head of Facilities here at STEP Academy Trust for three years, and before that, I was Head of Catering. I have been with the Trust for 12+ years and have worked with Avendra International (formerly Pelican Procurement) throughout this time.
STEP Academy Trust aims to provide an environment that promotes the health and well‐being of pupils, parents/carers and staff by ensuring that all food provision and food messages are healthy and consistent. We believe that healthier students learn more effectively and that a nutritionally balanced lunch can provide them with energy to keep their bodies and brains working throughout the afternoon.
We view catering as an integral part of a pupil’s experience and a factor which supports their learning and development. We have, therefore, chosen to manage our catering provision in-house to ensure that meals are well-balanced, visually appealing, and, of course, tasty! We also believe that meals should be prepared and served by a team who are not just passionate about catering, but also about the role they play in pupils’ education.
Centralising school catering ordering and recipe management with Pi
Since our partnership began, we have been using Avendra International’s Pi eProcurement system. The system includes modules for order management, menu recipe development, costings, budgeting, automatic allergen data presentation, and more.
We have a set menu for all academies, which changes seasonally three times a year. With all processes linked across 18 of our academies, Pi has had a transformative impact on our teams. We can easily upload and manage all of our recipes on the Pi system. Pi also helps us quickly cost out these recipes so we can monitor and control spending.
All products and pricing are agreed upon with our suppliers, streamlining the purchasing for all sites in one place. If one of our Catering Managers, who oversees around four kitchens, wishes to introduce a new recipe, we simply contact our Procurement Manager, Bal at Avendra International. He helps us identify products, negotiates the prices, and gets everything set up on Pi in the background.
To ensure that as much financial resource as possible is directed towards educating children, we have a responsibility within the catering team to make sure we operate efficiently. Knowing the Avendra International team is working in the background to monitor any price changes against our agreed contract prices is a great help.
Automating allergen and nutrition information across academies
The menu module within the Pi system pinpoints the allergens for every product we purchase and updates us if ingredients change. This saves so much time and helps to support and safeguard children with medical food allergies, playing an important part in a comprehensive set of safety processes.
We cater for a variety of dietary needs, including vegan and vegetarian diets, and we also specify nutritional information, such as whether a dish is dairy-free or gluten-free. Accounting for this through Pi results in huge time savings.
Streamlined invoicing: one monthly payment across all academies
One significant advantage of working with Avendra International is the time saved on administrative tasks. For example, their invoice management system is wonderful and a big time-saver.
We don’t have 101 invoices coming in from different suppliers for different schools. Instead, everything is organised by one direct debit once a month. We know the Avendra International team has checked all costs, and we are being invoiced the right amount.
Beyond catering: premises, cleaning and commercial equipment support
In recent years, Avendra International’s role has expanded beyond catering to support our premises and facilities functions, as well as commercial equipment.
At the end of 2023, we reviewed cleaning products for our premises service. This was to improve safety and quality through consistency, as well as to generate cost and efficiency savings like those experienced within our catering team. We’ve been able to consolidate suppliers for all cleaning products. Plus, Avendra International negotiated the free installation of new dispensers at all locations, for toilet roll, hand soap and hand towels.
Avendra International’s expert team have also advised us on the best commercial equipment to meet our requirements. We’ve been able to upgrade a basic dishwasher at one of our sites, where they provided a bespoke solution. In addition to this, we recently went to them for support when we upgraded three kitchen serveries, which improved functionality and aesthetics.
Reducing food miles and building a more sustainable catering model
A big item on our agenda is monitoring and managing sustainability targets. With the help of our procurement manager, we have decreased deliveries from five to two days per week. Not only does this help save on food miles, but it also reduces the cost and wider implications of multiple deliveries.
We are also looking to start using the Pi CO2e module to calculate the food carbon footprint of our recipes to identify where we can make more environmentally friendly dishes.
This will support the existing efforts of our Pupil Parliaments, who have been leading on food waste reduction across STEP.
A trusted procurement partner and extension of the team
The support Avendra International offer is invaluable – I don’t know what I’d do without it. They are like an extension of my team. If I’m stuck, I can call or email, and they are always there to help me.
We had an incident with a supplier who pulled out prior to the Christmas season. Bal set up another supplier straight away and no products were missed. A huge headache was averted thanks to Avendra International’s expertise!
Avendra International is a trusted partner to us. They have significantly enhanced our operational efficiency and identified cost savings in our catering and premises facilities functions that can be directed towards the classroom. They have also been pivotal in supporting our future sustainability goals.
I think I am one of the biggest supporters of the services offered through the Pi system. Everyone finds Pi so straightforward to use; it just makes our lives much easier.
The results: a 9.4% tendered saving and a five-year renewal
Following tendered savings of 9.4%, we have extended our catering procurement agreements with Avendra International for an additional five years – a clear reflection of the value and confidence we place in the partnership.
FAQs
How can multi-academy trusts simplify catering invoicing across multiple schools?
Avendra International's Pi invoice management consolidates supplier billing across every site into a single monthly payment, replacing numerous individual supplier invoices per school. This reduces administrative time and gives finance teams a clear, verified view of costs across the whole trust.
How does the Pi eProcurement system help schools manage recipes, menus and allergens?
Pi's menu module lets catering teams build, cost and update recipes centrally, automatically identifying allergens for every product used and flagging changes when ingredients change. This helps schools cater confidently to dietary needs such as vegan, vegetarian, dairy-free and gluten-free requirements while reducing manual admin.
Can Avendra International support school procurement beyond catering, such as premises and equipment?
Yes. Avendra International's support can extend to premises, cleaning and commercial equipment procurement, including consolidating cleaning suppliers, negotiating better terms, and advising on and sourcing commercial catering equipment to meet a school's specific needs.
How can schools and multi-academy trusts reduce catering costs through a procurement partnership?
Avendra International helps schools reduce costs through bespoke procurement management, compliant procurement frameworks and ongoing monitoring of supplier pricing against agreed contract rates, so cost savings are identified and maintained without adding to a school's own administrative workload.
How does a procurement partner support school sustainability goals?
Avendra International's Pi platform includes a CO2e module that helps calculate the carbon footprint of recipes, supporting more environmentally friendly menu choices. Procurement partnerships can also help schools review and reduce delivery frequency, cutting food miles alongside cost and efficiency gains.
